The value of effective 1 to 1 meetings is well-supported. Despite this, 1 on 1 meetings are too often wasted.... or don't happen at all. This robs you and your teammates the opportunity to perform at their best at work each day. The final responsibility falls on your manager to make these meetings great. However, there are many things you can do to improve your own 1 on 1s.Through your efforts, you can improve the quality of your 1 on 1s while helping your manager better recognize their value in the process.
Below are 7 tips that can help you improve the quality of your 1 on 1 meetings with just a few tweaks.
Avoid status updates :
When a manager or team member says they don't see the value of effective 1 on 1 meetings, it's a virtual certainty they spend most of the meeting talking about projects and status updates. That's a huge waste. Your manager needs a status update, even if you don't talk about it in your 1 on 1 meeting. The best way then to get them out of your 1 on 1 meeting then is to find ways to get them a status update another time.
Bring things you want to talk about:
It's not your manager's fault if you have nothing to talk about in your 1 on 1 meeting. IN fact, every time you come to your meeting with nothing to discuss, it makes them dread their 1 on 1 meeting with you a little more. It also gives them another reason to want to cancel or fill the time with status updates. Make an agenda for your 1 on 1 meeting. As you go through your week, write down things you want to discuss as they come to you. By your next 1 on 1 meeting, you'll have a healthy list of questions and topics you want to talk about with your manager like Your Career/Growth Goals,Team Improvement, elf Improvement, Interpersonal Issues. Effective 1 on 1 meetings happen when you do your part to bring things you want to discuss. The best way to ensure that happens is to make sure you write down topics as you think of them. Then, bring that list as an agenda to your 1 on 1 meeting.
Talk about your career goals:
We hear a common scenario over and over again: During your performance review, your manager asks you what your career goals are. You have a good conversation about ways you want to grow, and it's noted in your review. Then, six months to a year goes by, and nothing happens. When you finally get to your next review cycle, you both realize you haven't talked about your goals since the last review. In a rush, your manager copies over what you discussed last time and moves on to the next part of the review. They think they just saved 20 minutes, and you're left feeling disappointed. Bring your career growth and development goals to your 1 on 1 meetings. It would be great if your manager went up to you and said, "I really care about your career growth, so let's find a time on our calendars to talk about it soon." Unfortunately, even the best managers rarely get the chance to say that.
Your manager likely knows about opportunities in the company that you don't. If you make your career and skills growth part of your 1 on 1 meetings, they're much more likely to recognize a role you could fit when openings come up.It also creates an opportunity for you to make regular progress between review cycles. By breaking down challenges into steps you can accomplish between 1 on 1 meetings, you tap into the best way to stay motivated at work, according to Harvard research.
Make it actionable:
Finally having a great conversation with your manager about something important to you feels great. Like a pressure relief valve finally letting off a build-up of steam, you feel relieved.Unfortunately, that feeling can be very short-lived if a week or two later you're talking about the same issue again. Taking notes in the meeting will help with some of this, but even then it's easy to continue to revisit the same issue without making progress. If your meetings always simply end with something like, "See you next time," don't be surprised if some of your discussions start to feel like a broken record.Without action, there is no progress. Without progress, there's no change. And if nothing changes, you're going to get discouraged. You will start to see little point in continuing to talk about issues and ideas important to you.
It's more than a feeling. Researchers at Harvard found that *nothing* is more motivating than this feeling of progress. Establishing next steps is a great way to ensure you continue to have effective 1 on 1 meetings for the long term. Taking 2 minutes at the end of your 1 on 1 to set them can make all the difference.
Think about your manager's view :
There are two people that make up a 1 on 1 meeting. So far, we've focused on you, and how you can get your manager to do a few more things that benefit you. It's also important to remember that across the table, video chat, or conference room is another person. They also have stresses, pressures, challenges, ideas, and needs. Depending on what's going on in your company, they may not be getting the support or attention they need. They may have the best of intentions, but be overwhelmed to the point of it possibly being too much. Taking even a few minutes to talk about how you can help them can make a big difference. If your manager has a really big team, they can use all the help they can get. Take the lead, Learn their style.
Improving your listening skills:
Listening is a critical skill if you want to be a great manager. But it's also an important skill when you're communicating with your own manager and receiving feedback or advice. One on ones are an opportunity for your manager to give you feedback. The better your listening skills, the better you can implement that feedback, impress your manager, learn, and grow.
Source : https://getlighthouse.com/blog/effective-1-on-1-meetings/
Very well articulated!
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